A Voracious Reader
AVR Weekly News ~ 336th Edition

AVR Weekly News ~ 336th Edition

The One Where Social Distancing Is Wearing Me Out. And Also My Birthday

 

Source: http://imavoraciousreader.blogspot.com/2020/03/avr-weekly-news-336th-edition.html
The Write Reads Ultimate Blog Tours~ Magic Unleashed

The Write Reads Ultimate Blog Tours~ Magic Unleashed

 

 

Source: http://imavoraciousreader.blogspot.com/2020/03/friday-featured-spotlight-twr-ultimate.html
Review
4.5 Stars
Review ~ Awesome!
5 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Maurice Barkley

Book source ~ Tour

 

Within these pages are five stories told by Dr. Watson about his pal Sherlock Holmes. Five short stories about small jobs that Holmes (and he) have solved. The writing does a wonderful job of pulling me into not just each story but that particular time. I have not read all there is to read about Holmes and I haven’t seen more than a couple tv shows/movies, so I am no expert on the subject. All I know is I love this collection of tales detailing jobs of no big consequence to Holmes, but extremely important in the grand scheme of his work. No job too big or small as long as it piques his interest. These are right up his, and my, alley.

 

5 STORIES

 

The Holborn Toy Shop

The Legacy of Doctor Carus

The Train From Plymouth

The Whitehall Papers

The Grosvenor Square Furniture Van

Source: http://imavoraciousreader.blogspot.com/2020/03/5-adventures-of-sherlock-holmes.html
Spotlight ~ Suzy Spitfire and the Snake Eyes of Venus Tour

Spotlight ~ Suzy Spitfire and the Snake Eyes of Venus Tour

 

Admit it. You want to read it based solely on the title, right? lol

 

Source: http://imavoraciousreader.blogspot.com/2020/03/spotlight-suzy-spitfire-and-snake-eyes.html
AVR Weekly News ~ 335th Edition

AVR Weekly News ~ 335th Edition

 

The One Where TP Is Gold ~ WTF

 

Source: http://imavoraciousreader.blogspot.com/2020/03/avr-weekly-news-335th-edition.html
Review
4.5 Stars
Review ~ Awesome!
Ghost Walk (A Lacey Fitzpatrick and Sam Firecloud Mystery Book 1) - Melissa Bowersock

 

Book source ~ Kindle Unlimited

 

Lacey Fitzpatrick works as a security guard for a self-storage place because her ex-boyfriend was a dirty Vice cop and ended up in prison. With all of the reporters hounding her at every crime scene she decided the best thing to do was to resign from the LAPD Homicide Unit. But man does she miss it. Then, 6 months after leaving, the newspaper reports that a girl’s body is discovered and it may be connected to a serial killer cold case she was obsessed with. So, she goes to the crime scene to see what’s up and finds out that Sam Firecloud was called into the home by the owner because of unusual paranormal activity. Sam is a medium and he’s the real deal. In order to catch the Fairfax Stalker Lacey needs to convince Sam to work with her on it.

 

I had this book on my list for a while and finally decided to give it a go after going on a blogging break. This is an easy book to read. It flows smoothly and the pages turn themselves. Not literally. But I was done before I realized it. Lacey is a flawed character who tries to fix herself. She doesn’t usually wallow in her mistakes. Sam is a half-Navajo medium who keeps pretty much to himself. He doesn’t flash his gift around. He just wants to release spirits that are trapped and live his life. He’s not real excited about helping Lacey, but they end up making a terrific team. There’s not much gore to this. Bad things happen to girls in this book (revealed by the spirits), but it’s not front and center. I really like Sam and Lacey. The end up meshing really well together and I enjoy the writing and Lacey’s research so much I grabbed the next book in the series. And the next. And the next. Well, I binged, so that should tell you how much I enjoy these books. I highly recommend this cozy paranormal mystery.

Source: http://imavoraciousreader.blogspot.com/2020/03/ghost-walk.html
Review
4 Stars
Review ~ Entertaining!
Betwixt - Darynda Jones

Book source ~ Kindle Unlimited

 

Defiance “Dephne” Dayne is a forty-four-year-old divorced and broke woman who has just inherited a house from a woman she has never even heard of.  She has driven from Arizona in her rust bucket VW Bug to Salem, Massachusetts to claim it because why not? And yes, I did say Salem, MA. Home of the witch trials. The house is huge and persnickety. And it comes with a cat and a gorgeous hunk of a man who lives in the basement. But, wait! There’s more! But why should I spoil your fun?

 

If you are a fan of Charley Davidson then this book is right up your alley. Darynda Jones does not disappoint in this new series that should prove to be just as entertaining as Charley’s. There’s plenty of magical woowoo, a rich backstory, a hubba hubba guy, a cool house, humor, and great characters. Dephne is an interesting take on a witch and there appears to be danger galore on the horizon. I’m looking forward to watching this series unfold.

Source: http://imavoraciousreader.blogspot.com/2020/03/betwixt.html
Review
3.5 Stars
Review ~ Decent read
Summon the Keeper  - Tanya Huff

 

Book source ~ Purchased

 

Claire Hansen is a Keeper. I mean, as in, magically. She goes to accident sites and fixes them. And by accident I mean places that have had a magical boo boo happen. She and her companion, a white and black furry feline named Austin, go where they are summoned, fix the problem, and move on. Except this time, the guardian, a Cousin named Augustus, has buggered off from his post, the Elysian Fields Guesthouse, a rundown B&B in Kingston Ontario. It’s an accident site of unusual intensity and origin and Augustus had been there 70+ years keeping watch over it, but had finally decided he couldn’t take it anymore and summoned a Keeper. Who happens to be Claire. Now she’s stuck with this site and has to figure out how to close it for good or be trapped here until her dying day. Not an enjoyable prospect for one so powerful and in her prime no matter how gorgeous her cook/handy man, Dean McIssac, is.

 

This is a light and entertaining bit of fluff to keep you occupied for an afternoon. There’s magic, humor, Hell (who speaks in CAPS-trust me, hilarious!), and some yummy non-explicit hotness revolving around the handyman and a ghost. Plus, a talking cat. Yay! Dean’s Newfoundland accent got a bit irritating after a while, but I worked around it. Claire can be a little unlikeable at times, but not horrendously so. I got tired of Jacques and his constant sex innuendos. Give it a rest for a bit would ya? Claire’s sister Diana, I hated. Seriously. Anyway…The world is interesting and the characters entertaining (most of the time), so I say if you like a bit of different magic mixed with humor then give this a go. I mentioned the talking cat, right? Yay!

 

Source: http://imavoraciousreader.blogspot.com/2020/03/summon-keeper.html
AVR Weekly News ~ 334th Edition

AVR Weekly News ~ 334th Edition

 

The One Where We Bought A New Vehicle

 

Source: http://imavoraciousreader.blogspot.com/2020/03/avr-weekly-news-334th-edition.html
Reading progress update: I've read 18%.
It Ends With Her - Brianna Labuskes

The MC in this is completely unlikeable. She just rambles, trying to be deep and meaningful, but it's just confusing as fuck and comes across as fake as shit. There are other chapters with different POVs and those are interesting. Otherwise this would have been tossed to the DNF shelf. I may still do that. Or just skip her chapters altogether.

Friday Featured Spotlight~TWR Blog Tour: Kingshold

Friday Featured Spotlight~TWR Blog Tour: Kingshold

 

 

Source: http://imavoraciousreader.blogspot.com/2020/03/friday-featured-spotlight-twr-tour-of.html
Review
4 Stars
TWR Ultimate Blog Tour ~ Decent read
Magic Unleashed - Devri Walls

Book source ~ Tour

 

Rune Jenkins loves all things supernatural, but has to suppress her fascination around her twin, Ryker. For some reason he’s taken an extreme dislike of the things she likes and it’s exhausting hiding it from him. One person she knows embraces the supernatural though and Grey Malteer doesn’t seem to care that people think he’s weird. When creatures suddenly come hunting for them, Rune is in for a rude awakening. The things she’s been drawn to are not fantasy, they’re real and she, Ryker, and Grey are sucked up into their world. It’s not all fun and games in Eon. In fact, it’s not fun at all. It’s terrifying and Grey and Rune don’t know who to trust. But Rune knows this…she will do anything to rescue her twin from the crazy bitch (and Council of Eon enemy) who took him from Earth. This Zio chick better watch out. Because Rune is coming for Ryker whether he likes it or not. Family is family.

 

While I’m a little iffy on the whole Council reason for bringing the Venators back to Eon after so long, I do enjoy the action. The characters are complex and yet simplistic. Grey has had a shitty upbringing, but he’s a good person. Rune has had an uncomplicated upbringing and she’s reckless and, to be honest, an idiot. At least she has good instincts and hasn’t gotten Grey killed. Yet. Ryker is completely unlikeable at this point, but who knows what the future holds? Side characters are pretty awesome. I think I almost like them more than the main characters. I didn’t rate this higher simply for personal reasons. Or one reason. The Council. They seem so cliché and all this double (triple, quadruple?) secret dealing is something I really hate. I get it. They are immortal creatures who thrive on this devious shit, but I really truly hate it. What can I say? Not a fan. However, the story flows fairly smoothly with no overly explained scenes and the world is fascinating. I look forward to seeing where this is headed.

Source: http://imavoraciousreader.blogspot.com/2020/03/magic-unleashed.html
AVR Weekly News ~ 333rd Edition

AVR Weekly News ~ 333rd Edition

 

Goodbye February, Hello March or as I like to say, Birthday & Spring rolled into one.

 

Source: http://imavoraciousreader.blogspot.com/2020/03/avr-weekly-news-333rd-edition.html
Review
4 Stars
Review ~ Whoa
Cockblock - Ramona Master, Roderick Hunt, Roderick Hunt

Book source ~ Kindle Unlimited

 

Sonya and her partner Callie are going out for their date night when things go horribly wrong. Men, all men, are behaving incredibly badly. They are spouting terrible pickup lines and sexually assaulting women. Sonya and Callie take refuge in the restaurant where they were going to have their date, but there are men raping a woman there. Gathering their courage they take care of the assholes and rescue the woman. But this is just the beginning of a terrible nightmare made real.

 

Wow. How scary is this? There are plenty of men out there in real life who behave like these assholes all the time. In this book, ALL the men are doing it and out in the open. They’re like walking dick zombies. All they can do is fuck women and they don’t care if the woman is dead either. Ewwww. What starts it all? An announcement by the President over all air waves. Well, isn’t that just peachy? The Prez just started an apocalypse. Totally something his predecessor didn’t do. What a bigly “winner” that fucker is. I feel bad for guys who aren’t assholes getting sucked into the deranged idiot’s apocalypse just because he has a Y chromosome. I wish there were pockets of resistance taking out the ones doing all the damage. Oh, well. In the end, the ones responsible get what they deserve.

 

Review
5 Stars
Review ~ Awesome!
Popcorn and Poltergeists - Nancy Warren

Book source ~ Kindle Unlimited

 

Lucy Swift is getting very good at running her undead grandmother’s knitting shop in Oxford. Cardinal Woolsey’s is running smoothly and the vampire knitting circle is producing hand-knitted items at an incredible rate. Well, they are vampires after all so they knit very fast. The classes Lucy has set up are also taking off and she has a sneaking suspicion her newly undead grandmother is thinking of opening a new knitting shop somewhere far enough away that she won’t be recognized by former customers. Lucy’s not quite ready to let her grandmother go though, but she knows she’ll have to do it soon. Which is why she’s trying to up her studying of all things witchy. Oh, didn’t I mention that part? Lucy is also a witch. And so was her grandmother. Now that she’s got a handle on running the store, she needs her gran’s help with the witchy things. And then there’s the occasional murder to solve. Yep. I said it. Murder. And let’s not mention her love life. Who am I kidding? Let’s!

 

Rafe Crosyer is a very old vampire and the unofficial leader of the group in Oxford. He’s been there so long that he needs to think about moving on soon. But Lucy just got there and she’s not ready to move again. Plus, while Rafe is yummy and protective and smart and all that good stuff, he’s also a vampire. Who won’t age while she will. Dilemma! Of course, there’s Inspector Ian, but Lucy seems to have written off the good officer. Well, pooh. In any case, I’m looking forward to seeing where Rafe and Lucy’s relationship heads.

 

Now, to the murder…it’s an interesting one. There’s  a poltergeist in St. Mary’s College library! And with someone dead, Lucy and the vampires think that maybe the poltergeist had something to do with it. In any case, Lucy wants to figure out why the poltergeist is there and how to move it along before someone else gets hurt. Or worse.

 

I love this series of cozy mysteries with vampires and witches and love and humor. This particular one seems to better put together than the previous ones though I love them all. It flows easily and while I had my suspicions about the killer it still kept me guessing until the end. The addition of the poltergeist is a nice touch and I like how Lucy is finally taking her witchy abilities seriously. I hope there are many more books in this series.

Source: http://imavoraciousreader.blogspot.com/2020/02/popcorn-and-poltergeists.html
Review
4.5 Stars
Review ~ Awesome!
Past This Point - Nicole Mabry

Book source ~ ARC. My review is voluntary and honest.

 

When Karis Hylen decides to give up dating and be a crotchety hermit she had no idea it would save her life. Her recent antisocial behavior comes in handy when a new virus starts killing people and the east coast gets quarantined. Alone in New York City with no transportation she holes up in her apartment building. But as the weeks drag on, the emptiness and quiet starts to get to her. Good thing she has her loyal companion Zeke with her to keep her grounded. But when her supplies start running precariously low, she knows she has no choice but to make for the quarantine border in Loveland, Iowa. How the hell is she going to get out of the city and all the way there when she has no wheels?

 

Put in an impossible situation, Karis has to survive not only physically, but mentally. This isn’t just a story about how she keeps herself and Zeke safe and fed. It’s about her mental state and coming to terms with how she has lived her life and how she will move forward if she makes it out of this situation alive. It’s at times heart breaking as well as heart pounding and completely enthralling. I kept thinking, would I know what to do in a situation like this? Do I have knowledge buried in my brain that could help? I think so. While it could drag a little bit in spots, it was hard to put down. I wanted to see what Karis had to deal with next. If you like apocalyptic stories then I highly recommend this. Especially since Karis is older than your typical main character in this type of story. At 38 she has some experience to pull from. I have to tell you, this book stuck with me long after I finished it. And I’m sure my family got sick of me telling them all about it. LOL So, grab it now and let me know what you think.

Source: http://imavoraciousreader.blogspot.com/2020/02/past-this-point.html

currently reading

Progress: 8%
Progress: 116/400pages
Progress: 20/854minutes
Progress: 9/320pages
The Vault of Dreamers - Caragh M. O'Brien